Scope of the programme

• Countries impacted: Spain, Belgium, France, Germany, The Netherlands and Italy
• Thematic axis:
  - sustainability transition,
  - digital transformation,
  - innovation support,
  - cross-border collaboration.
• Funding programme lineage (EU, national, regional): national (EU-framed initiative implemented regionally (EU-coordinated concept delivered through regional/national tourism boards)

Description of the project

• Project objective(s): reduce the per-participant carbon footprint at events by improving mobility choice (awareness of public transport, shared mobility, first/last-mile options).
• Duration: N/A
• Main activities: build a rapid MVP build of a basic yet reliable app and curation of local transport data around pilot events and testing with event organizers.
• Outputs: a functioning MVP app, a playbook for onboarding new venues/events, and early carbon-saving estimates tied to modal shift.

Type of application

• Single applicant: Yes
• Consortium members: No
• Subcontractor: No

Success Factors
• Strategic fit with call priorities: Problem–solution fit, ENNOV Solutions targeted a clear pain point at events (visitors don’t know local transport option) with a simple, testable tool. Although the company did not receive the funds, its experience and capability allow her to be a mentor for other SMEs that receive funds in the same call.

Barriers & Challenges

• Eligibility criteria: Evaluators flagged ENNOV’s app cost analysis as insufficient. The company recognizes her presentation style likely underplayed feasibility evidence and risk mitigation
• Time & resource constraints: Post-results benchmarking showed several larger companies (tens of staff, significant turnover) winning the funds, while ENNOV’s micro-proposal was rejected.

Lessons learned
• Importance of over-document feasibility: Don’t assume pragmatism speaks for itself, the application must show the numbers, the delivery plan, and the evidence that contributes to the proposed goal.
• Design for evaluation optics: Build a richer narrative around context, market need, and policy alignment; anticipate comparative scoring against larger corporate decks.

This case is relevant to micro-entrepreneurs across the EU who aim to develop digital, low-carbon solutions for the tourism and events ecosystem, even with very limited internal capacity. It shows how solo founders can remain competitive by tightly framing their proposal around EU priorities and by clearly evidencing feasibility despite small budgets.